Flu Shots at University of Kentucky

  

Getting a Flu Shot at Kentucky

Documentation of my first flu shot. 

I was very surprised to know that I have never received one before, but today I received my first flu shot. As a school requirement, all students are required to get a flu shot before starting the upcoming semester. This is to ensure safety during the flu season which could be very dangerous as we are in the midst of a pandemic. If one has the coronavirus and the flu at the same time, the resulting impact could be even more severe than having either infection alone. This is why it is imperative to get a flu vaccination to reduce the risk of getting the flu and COVID-19 at the same time. 

An informative sheet that discusses the flu shot.

The process overall was very simple. After registering online, all I needed was to provide my insurance card, and I was able to sit down and get a flu shot at the food court location. It took less than five minutes total and was super easy.

In my opinion, it is good to see that the university is taking precaution against the threat of a "twindemic". A bad influenza season can have a major impact on our hospitals and hospital bed capacity on top of an already frightening pandemic. This could lead to a huge problem across the United States overall, and it is good to see that the University of Kentucky is taking action to prevent students from facing the effects of a twindemic. Though, I am not sure how the university factors in people not wanting the vaccine for religious and personal reasons. Can the institution truly require students to receive a vaccine if the student wants to return to campus? I am unsure how can the university address any objections to getting a vaccine, yet I support their methods during this time. It is best to be safe about the whole situation rather than risk the lives of students that attend their school. 

COVID Vaccines and Global Cooperation

 

COVID-19 Vaccines and Global Cooperation

Globalization is so apparent in modern day society that issues that occur in one society end up effecting everyone else around the world. COVID-19 is facilitated through the means of globalization, as most other viruses and illnesses are. Through international travel by air and water, COVID-19 has effected nearly every country on the planet. As the virus itself is a global issue, the distribution and facilitation of the vaccine is an global issue as well. 

Vaccines require a lot of global integration and communication. When a virus or flu is discovered, almost every country searches for a vaccine to better the overall health of the country and limit deaths. Countries work together to send resources and financial aid to enhance the speed of finding a vaccine suitable for the virus. In the United States, we currented are undergoing Operation Warp Speed under the Trump administration which seeks the fastest possible vaccine. This is often worrying because we now worry about the possibility of wasting materials on a vaccine that may be ineffective since we are rushing. 

Along with the materials required, we also face the problem of cooperation from countries. According to a New York Times article written by Knvul Sheikh, "At least 69 countries have also banned or restricted the export of medical devices, medicines and protective equipment, according to the Global Trade Alert project at the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland, because of their own needs during the pandemic". This is quite worrying due to the sheer amount of cooperation needed to find a vaccine and transport it. Yet, countries find themselves in their own struggles and are not ready to extend help to others. 

A final issue that is quite interesting is the cooperation needed to store these vaccines. Most vaccines require a certain temperature maintain effectiveness. In some cases, this is as low as minus 80 Celsius. A lot of room is needed to store thousands of vials as well as proper glass that can withstand such low temperatures. This glass can become quite costly, as David Gelles noted in his New York Times article. He wrote that, "In June, the government awarded the company a $204 million contract to increase its production of the special vials". This is an incredible amount of money to spend on the specific glass required to avoid cracking and ultimately losing vaccines. When transporting these vaccines, there must also be temperature cooling in the planes, which is where the usage of dry ice comes in. Yet, dry ice is made of carbon dioxide and releases the gas which can be very dangerous to the pilots. Dry ice itself also requires ethanol which is a resource that can become easily depleted if used in overabundance. Overall, the issue of creating and transporting vaccines is one that requires a lot of global help and communication. 

COVID-19 Shaping Education

 COVID-19 Shaping Education

It is no surprise that the pandemic has shaped online education. Remote learning is the new norm for now, but it is a change that has not been welcomed by many. From experience, teachers and students alike have struggled to adapt to a new form of learning: e-learning. 

An email regarding cancellation of class due to technical difficulties. 

Above is a e-mail I received from my astronomy professor last Friday leading to the cancellation of class for the day. This is the second time this has happened so far, and is making me contemplate the effectiveness of online learning. This is not the only teacher I have had that has experienced some sort of electronic mishap leading to a cancellation of class. Many of my teachers, especially in high school e-learning right when the pandemic started, have faced the issue of adapting to fully online coursework. Missing one class is not really a problem for me, but it really does make me wonder if e-learning is even worth doing.

 Now I know this may seem extreme, but there are so many more benefits to in person instruction. Many students I have spoken to have talked about how they are having a hard time in their math classes especially with prerecorded lectures and not being able to ask questions real-time. Along with this, in my own experience, online learning has taken away almost all interaction to be had with professors. You may experience the occasional question at the end of the stream or maybe even answering a question during a zoom call, but other than that, I have not had any real connection to the professors. I work pretty well with teachers knowing their personality and vice versa. Remote learning takes away this opportunity and in turn does not provide an equal opportunity for everyone to learn. Many people need this hands on learning that I am speaking about to truly learn and understand concepts. Without it, people are failing to get the hands on instruction that they find necessary to thrive especially in their first year of college. 

In high school e-learning, there was a policy that doing poorly on assignments could not negatively impact your overall grade. While I enjoyed that policy because I was a senior in high school with "senioritis", I found it to be counterintuitive and almost detrimental to learning. Yet, I do feel like such a policy, on a lower scale, should be implemented to assist students taking online classes. Online school is hard, both academically and mentally. It is sometimes a struggle having to wake up and lack having that social interaction with peers and to wake up just to go to a zoom call. A hardship clause for students impacted by the coronavirus could help students with this abrupt change in learning. Our whole lives we have been taught in person. This change is a tough one on all of us, especially in terms of our motivation. 

Along with this, seeing as though students in Asia and Europe are already having face-to-face classes, and I worry for my nations competitiveness with foreign nations. Other nations seem to be recovering easier from the pandemic while the Unites States seems to be lagging behind. For the field I would like to go into, meteorology, I do not really have this fear of competing with those from foreign nations, but for those majoring in business, it can be a scary thought when looking at international policy and how the United States may fall behind.  

Hobbies During COVID-19

 Hobbies During COVID-19

There is no doubt that the coronavirus has eliminated the possibly of many forms of social gatherings. When I arrived to the University of Kentucky, I was immediately dismayed by the sight of the basketball courts being taken down. Before COVID, I had taken up basketball as a hobby for a while and was really starting to enjoy it. Once the pandemic hit, though, the rims were taken down almost everywhere. Playing basketball would have been a pretty easy way to meet people and make friends, which really disappointed me when I found out that opportunity would be taken away. 

Pictured: The basketball court near me before COVID-19

As for now, if I even wanted to go play basketball, I would have to walk 30 minutes at least to a park a couple miles away. I went with my friend recently, but got rained on while walking back. Overall, the experience was pretty unpleasant, so we have refrained from going back. 

To find something else to take up time, I have taken up longboarding. This is an activity that is pretty individual unless going out with others which even at that point is pretty socially distant. I invested in a pretty nice longboard a little while back and have been exploring the campus recently at night because it is pretty relaxing. I am just hoping soon that the hoops will be put back up so that I can resume my hobby of playing basketball and possibly meet some people. Although I have gotten pretty good at skating, I miss hooping.  

Basketball hoops at Syracuse University, reminiscent of the outdoor court at University of Kentucky

Working During COVID-19

 

Losing My Jobs During COVID-19

This was not really a recent experience, but this all happened about two months ago during the summer before college. The summer after my senior year was pretty tough in terms of my jobs. I lost two jobs during that time because I worked in the restaurant industry. At the time, I was working at a restaurant called 151 Kitchen and Bar. Before the pandemic hit, I worked there for almost two years at that point. Yet, in Illinois, all the restaurants were forced to close down and many people lost their jobs including me. For me, it was not too much of a problem because to me this as not a career. I was working this job to save up some money for college, but for the people I was working with, this was their only source of income. 

151 Kitchen and Bar in Elmhurst, IL

So when the pandemic hit, it was pretty sad witnessing those who I had worked with have to worry about how they will pay rent. It was especially saddening to see the owner of the restaurant worry because her three restaurants all closed down simultaneously, losing all revenue and having to throw out all the product in the kitchen. 

Pazzi Di Pizza in Elmhurst, IL

After I was furloughed, I looked for other sources of money during the time so that I could continue saving up for college. At point, I applied for a job delivering pizzas at a place called Pazzi Di Pizza. After getting the job and only working there for about 3 weeks, a person in the kitchen got the coronavirus and the whole restaurant shut down for weeks. I was pretty saddened about this one because I truly enjoyed delivering pizzas. Being able to listen to music all day and getting a lot of tips from the frequent orders during lockdown made the job a pretty good gig. Eventually the job opened back up after a couple weeks, but for a while I really had nothing to do. Working was something that kept me busy during the isolation of being home. 

President Trump Gets COVID-19

 Donald Trump Gets COVID-19

Tweet from Donald Trump on October 2nd, 2020.

Yesterday the President of the United States has announced that he and his wife have tested positive for COVID-19 on twitter. This is a pretty huge event, especially during the election. Being the leader of our nation, the President must set a precedent for his citizens. On the first presidential debate, he even criticized Joe Biden for his usage of a mask. Overall, the situation is pretty ironic seeing as though Donald Trump has gotten the virus and was poking fun at former Vice President Biden for doing something that everyone in the nation should be doing: wearing a mask. 

Considering both are much older in age, this could potentially be a very dangerous situation for America as a whole. As we know, the virus is deadly for those who are older due to the weakened immune system. We will have to see how this all plays out, but this is a pretty bad look for the president during this election season. Will voters take him seriously after he himself gets the virus after toting his "good genes"? As someone that is planning on voting, this makes me wonder the validity of Donald Trump's campaign and ideology. Can we trust someone who does not even follow the guidelines put in place for his constituents?